Yesterday, the Green Team (a group of eco-minded TOMS staff who work to make the office a “greener” place) hosted a potluck lunch, which was an awesome way to decompress amidst the craziness.  Having attempted potluck lunches before, I halfway expected most people to forget about it and pick up a bag of chips at the store on the way to work.  That was soooo not the case. Let me just say, not only are TOMS employees passionate, funny, and intelligent (not to mention totally hip and trendy), but these people can COOK! Several of the interns participated as well and impressed the office with our mad culinary skills.

I brought homemade spaghetti sauce, Grace made roasted beets, Julia brought a fruit platter, Alex baked some mac n’ cheese, David made arugula/feta pasta salad, and Amanda baked some delicious blondie brownies for dessert. Other interesting dishes included chicken stuffed with swiss and brocolli, veggie fried rice, baked brie, spicy zucchini, vegan oreo cupcakes, and oh yeah- the most amazing banana pudding I’ve ever tasted. And I’m from the South, so that’s saying something…. sorry Grandma!

Alex checking on her Mac n’ Cheese!

I am coming to realize that here at TOMS, people are constantly going above and beyond… even in the kitchen.

Amanda showing off her plate of homemade goodness!

Gotta remember to stir the spaghetti sauce!

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

From left to right: Amanda, Heather, Julia, Jessie, Dianna, Sarah, Mike, Grace, Alex, Carly, David and our intern coordinator Caroline in front

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

On my journey from Georgia I made a stop at the Grand Canyon.  Wearing my TOMS in the snow, no doubt!

After only a few days on the job, I can tell that working at TOMS is going to be intense.  But then again, so is anything that’s actually worthwhile.  We walked into the large warehouse that houses TOMS HQ in Santa Monica last Thursday for the first time, nervous, excited, and not sure what to expect.  We had come from far and wide; Connecticut, Georgia, Arizona, Texas, California, Kansas, and oh yeah… Germany.  I think it is safe to say the TOMS mission is inspiring people all over the globe!  Our first day on the job was spent getting “oriented.” Our awesome intern coordinator, Caroline, showed us the ropes and introduced us to several of the employees.  We chilled in a conference room for most of the day as each manager came back to introduce themselves and explain their position at TOMS.    It was surreal.  I think it is safe to say that all of us were on cloud nine… were we REALLY here? Was that ACTUALLY Blake Mycoskie that just walked by?

Some of the interns gathering for the first time at TOMS HQ!

Hard at work already in the Online department “office.” One wall is made completely out of old TOMS shoe boxes!

We got to sleep in a little on Friday and were told to report to the office at 10:30 to be introduced to the ENTIRE staff.  I’m not gonna lie… I was pretty nervous.  I knew we were going to have to stand in front of everyone and introduce ourselves and would have about ten seconds to convince everyone that we were funny and cool.  However, as soon as Caroline led us into the room with all the other TOMS employees, any previous jitters immediately disappeared.  Everyone was hanging around in a circle and gave us a round of applause when we walked in.  And standing in front wearing bright green sweatpants and clapping loudest of all was the man himself, Blake– the brains behind the whole operation.  He was so cool and welcomed us all to the family.  Because TOMS is just that, a family, and we were now a part of it.

Our new boss!

And then, of course, we still had to stand in front of the 60+ staff and introduce ourselves, but everyone was super nice and at least pretended to laugh at our jokes.  After our meeting, we got right to work, and I’ve got to say it was quite a rush.  Working in an environment like the one at TOMS makes you actually WANT to work, because you know you’re doing it for a reason bigger than yourself, bigger than a paycheck.

Our intern coordinator, Caroline, introduces new intern Grace to the TOMS staff

Well, that is all for now, my friends.  I hope you all will enjoy keeping up with the adventures we are about to embark on at TOMS.  Stay tuned…

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Dear Vagabonds,

Mike
Director, Campus Programs

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

That’s right, Team South East has globe-trotted, or country-trotted rather, for the past three months and is now facing their final days on tour. Carmin, Sloan and Liz have successfully driven to the four corners of the country- New York, Miami, L.A., and San Fran- And in an effort to shamelessly celebrate the culmination of all things South East I’d like to give you some tips- some awesome-road-tripping advice straight from our van to yours.

Mind you- this information, these tips, are not for the faint of heart.

Alright so here are some things you must keep in mind!-

1. When sleeping under the stars at the Grand Canyon (on top of your Van of course) you REALLY need a mat to sleep upon. The three of us suggest multiple layers of clothes, hefty blankets, and of course parking directly beside a bathroom. You will never, ever, ever regret locking arms, and looking up at the stars whilst on top of an automobile. We would however recommend getting to your final destination (ie- the Grand Canyon camp site) prior to 4:00 a.m. because as we learned, the sun rises around 5.

2. Do not ever, under any sort of circumstances spend all of your food dollars on fast-food restaurants. We had some of the most amazing foods, some of the most awesome dining experiences by hitting up all the mom and pop shops. Dining locally means getting fresh ingredients, and of course supporting the local economy- very TOMS.

3. Some may argue with me, but air beds are a big-fluffy waste of time. I mean it- team southeast has gone through two, alright well we were only responsible for mysteriously popping one- but the second one deflated in the middle of the night at Josh Owen’s house (famously known for his fabulous season one shenanigans) leaving poor Sloan and Liz to their own back-aching devices. I’m telling you- a bed mat, or roughing it on the floor is the way to go- now that I think about it, I never actually slept on the floor- beds, couches, and other sleeping contraptions were always available.

4. Whenever spending your “down-time” (whatever that means) in small shanty-shack southern towns, do not sit around sulking wishing you were hanging out with all of your amazing friends in Los Angeles- go searching, go exploring! Not only did many of our adventure excursions turn up some of the best antique shop treasures, but we also happened upon the 8th wonder of the world! Located in the heart of Walterboro, S.C. is baby Niagra Falls! That’s right people, I’m talking get too close and you’re bound to get soaked! My point? Get out- regardless of how quiet the town you’re in may be- there’s always something yet to be discovered!

5. Cherish this time.

Alright folks, so… this is our last entry. I can honestly say in addition to the memories I’ve made while on the road, while working at TOMS, and while living in a house jam-packed house with dozens of other Vagabonds, I’ve also made some of the best, most interesting, most unique friends of my life.

Hit the road, invest in people’s lives- invest in the people who you meet every day and find a way to invest in the lives of the people (like many of the children who we give TOMS Shoes to) who you may never see face to face.

My first inclination is to say goodbye- but you’ll be hearing a lot more from many of us- this season’s Vagabonds were comprised of some of the most remarkable people I’ve ever met- so look out because there’s much more to come.

See you soon-

Carmin, Sloan and Liz.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

This verse could very well be our motto for being a Vagabond. We are all the most eclectic and different group of people. Many of us would not be friends had we met on the street. However, this experience with the good and the bad, has bonded us for life. We can all identify with almost every emotion the other felt for the past 5 months. We really did lean on one another and each and every one of these people have become my family.

It is with a heavy heart that I say “goodbye” to you TOMS fanatics out there that enjoy reading about our adventures. And with an even heavier heart and hung head that I say goodbye to all of the other Vagabonds and the TOMS family in general. All of you passionate about TOMS out there, you inspire US! Meeting you, feeling your love, being welcomed into your schools and homes was an honor. The acceptance we got just by being TOMS vagabonds was beyond amazing.

We have shared the hardest and greatest of times together and you guys have been there to have a birds eye view of all of our adventures. We cried, we laughed, we fell and we got back up. Many times, you guys helped us back up. Your passion invigorated us when our drives were too long or our heads were cloudy. From the bottom of everything in my heart, I thank each and every one of you that we encountered on this tour.

TOMS is forever the collective love of my life and being a part of this process was the greatest adventure I ever got myself into! Getting thousands of shoes on the feet of children in need is the coolest and most fabulous accomplishment I think I have made in life. I couldn’t have done any of it without the help of the entire Vagabond group.

Team Southwest rocked the west coast back and forth and even took our moves into Oklahoma and Texas. We had more fun with everyone out there than we can put into words! We spread love and compassion to everyone in our path, and they gave it back to us ten fold. Bernadette treated us well, we drove her hard! This “season” in our lives might be over, but we will forever be your TOMS girls. Keep us in your hearts, as we will continue to keep you in ours forever!

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Yes I said “end” but we will be Vagabonds for life!!This experience was quite a journey and I think all of us have learned so much about ourselves in the process. To all of our readers who have been following our tour and watching our videos, thank you for all of your support. We will leave this experience with some great stories to share with our friends and families. I will never forget the crazy moments with our 15 passenger van. Driving that thing was an experience in itself.

Time definitely went by fast for us. Just being back at the office and driving down Olympic Blvd. again has brought back so many memories of the beginning of our journey. I feel we have grown so much in this short time and I’m glad to see all of the familiar faces at HQ and even some new faces, too! Vagabonds, I love you all and it has been a privilege to get to know and make memories with all of you. I have to say that I started this tour with 3 pairs of TOMS and I am leaving with 15! My favorite right now is the pair that i designed while we were in Chicago, what do you think? Cool huh? I plan to wear them all summer and enjoy my TOMS tan lines too.

So long guys! Peace and love be with all of you! -Hajar

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We were reunited with our other Vaga-loves in Vegas over the weekend! How I missed them so! On Friday night a few of us went to see the Beatles Love Circue Du Soleil show! AMAZING!

It comes highly recommended from this girl. We also went as a whole group to see the Jazon Mraz and Dave Matthews Band concert at the MGM Grand! It was a ton of fun! Those boys put on a great show!

And now our tour has come full circle, because we are back in LA! We had a few final events this week, and now it is over! It’s still incredibly surreal that it’s been three months.

For the next few days, I’m going to savor being with all of these crazy fools. They’ve changed my life forever, and I know that they will be my friends for LYFE. Yep, I went there.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I can’t talk about what happened here.

*sigh* it’s our last week. We cannot believe it. We have been on the road for 11 weeks. It is craziness. Right now, I’m listening to Ana belt out that terrible Taylor Swift song about Romeo or whatever for the 743rd time, and honestly I’m gonna miss the mad rush to get my headphones in every time that song comes on the radio. As ridiculous as it is, I think I speak for all of Team Ndubs when I say that as much as we’re ready to be home with family and friends we’re still gonna miss life on the road. The endless drives, the overwhelming smell of manure when passing farms, the constant search for Chick fil A’s….

…and the soul-crushing disappointment when we find one only to realize they’re closed because it’s Sunday which we didn’t realize because days don’t mean anything anymore. We’ll miss being able to feel OK about not showering for days at a time… actually that was more the girls… and I won’t miss that part… We’ll miss seeing snow one day and 70 degrees the next. We’ll miss never knowing if we’re gonna be sleeping in a bed, on a couch, or on a floor. We’ll miss trips to Denny’s where they get every single one of our orders wrong. We’ll miss singing along to Celine, Disney, and the Beatles. We’ll miss Jill, our GPS, and her attempts to take us down dirt roads and taking us to banks and Walmarts that don’t actually exist. But most of all we’ll miss all of the amazing people we’ve met along the way. You guys are the ones that made this trip one of the coolest experiences of our lives.

Now we’ll soon be parting ways. Ana is planning to audition for the next season of American Idol; Carolyn has already nailed down a job selling knives on QVC from 2am-6am on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays; and Justin is going to a position at the American Society of Sarcasm. It’s been real. It’s been good. Some would even say, it’s been real good.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Just pinch me because this past week was an amazing dream! While in Chicago for a few events we got to be part of history and join the Invisible Children Rescue Riders and Roadies to the final rescue that happened on the morning of May 1st.

It was a hopeful goal to see if Oprah Winfrey would come to our rescue. What an adrenaline rush jumping from place to place and getting the word out to onlookers while standing outside of Harpo Studios! We made new friends who were truly living the Vagabond lifestyle: many groups traveled from city to city for this global occasion… and there were so many pairs of TOMS in the crowd. Everywhere you turn you would catch people walking, cheering, dancing and even singing “In the name of love Oprah come and rescue us” in TOMS!

I think the most unique trait is that after six days we were rescued by Oprah. Cheers to all of you who got involved with this amazing cause in hopes to finally putting an end to the abduction of child soldiers.

Until next time, here is a view of the open road from our vaga-van. This is pretty much what we will be seeing until we get back to Santa Monica! Can’t believe our road trip adventure is so close to an end…

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.